Macro-microscopy and HPTLC Atlas of Heartwood of Erythroxylum monogynum Roxb. (Indian Bastard Sandalwood)

Background: Erythroxylum monogynum Roxb. (Fam. Erythroxylaceae) is a tree growing up to 9 m in dry evergreen to deciduous forests, distributed in South India mainly on the Deccan plateau, up to 3000 ft. The wood oil possesses characteristic pleasant odour and a pungent taste, hence adulterated with sandalwood oil in perfumery. Traditionally wood oil is used for webbing eczema; bark and wood used for stomach ailments, as a stimulant, diaphoretic, diuretic, for dyspepsia and also for continuous fever. E. monogynum is used as adulterant in the herbal drug market for the heartwood of sandal on account of their morphological and organoleptic resemblances. Objectives: A systematic pharmacognostical study of dried stem heartwood of E. monogynum has been executed to identify the microscopical and phytochemical features. Materials and Methods: Morphology, anatomy, powder microscopy and TLC/HPTLC studies were carried out by standard Pharmacopoeial protocols. Results: Surface characters, odour, taste, arrangement of xylem elements in TS, TLS, RLS, fibres, tailed pitted vessels, tyloses, xylem rays, axial parenchyma with brownish content, tracheids, fibre tracheids, prismatic crystal, crystal fibre and oil globules were the unique diagnostic characters observed. HPTLC showed 5, 6 and 11 bands under 254 nm, 366 nm and white light (post derivatisation with vanillin-sulphuric acid) respectively. The denistogram showed 12, 10 and 13 peaks at UV 254 nm, 366 nm and 520 nm after derivatisation. Conclusion: The findings of the present study will be helpful in identification of this raw drug as a whole or as a powder.